The field of this invention relates to wiring assemblies, and more particularly to wiring assemblies for vehicle sliding doors.
Vehicle makers have long-appreciated the benefits of providing power to sliding doors of the type that are commonly used in vans. This is important in the event that the maker wants to provide lighting or other power accessories in the door. Commonly, the sliding door will have internal wiring that terminates at one end in the lighting or other accessory. At the other end, the wiring terminates in a pressure contact plunger. When the door is closed, the contact plunger mates within a contact pad assembly mounted on the vehicle in the door frame. This arrangement is satisfactory, but it could be improved in several respects. First, the door only gets power when it is closed. When it is open, the plungers disengage the pads and no power travels to the door. Second, the arrangement depends on critical alignments that, if missing, can prevent the door from closing, or lead to breaking the plungers. Also, the plungers are exposed to the environment, making them susceptible to corrosion.
A wiring assembly includes a cable with a first end adapted to attach to a power source in the vehicle and a second end adapted to attach to the door. Also included is a winding device disposed along the cable and adapted to attach to either the vehicle or the door. Additionally, there is a cable guide attached to either the vehicle or the door at a point spaced away from the winding device for guiding the cable when the door opens and closes.
A feature of the invention is the cable guide, which guides and supports the cable along a non-linear path.
Another feature is that one can provide power to the door even when it is open.
These and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following description of a preferred embodiment taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing.